BUILDING on the widespread success of its world-first closed loop recycling scheme for meal trays, leading meals provider apetito has further advanced its programme through investing in a dedicated sorting facility – increasing operational capacity and supporting the scheme’s continued expansion across its customer base.
This investment also marks a significant milestone for the pioneering initiative, with the business having now recycled more than 40 million trays nationwide since it began back in 2021.
First rolled out across its consumer business Wiltshire Farm Foods, the system now operates through partnering healthcare and care homes customers too, with an increasing number of sites taking part month-on-month.
The Project Boomerang scheme involves apetito collecting back its washed, used PET meal trays directly from customers and sending them to a specialist recycling facility in the UK.
The business guarantees that 100 per cent of the collected trays are recycled into new trays which are then distributed back to the company for use, ensuring a closed loop system and generating better results than household recycling – where 46 per cent of what is collected gets sent abroad for processing with uncertain results.
Opening a sorting facility provides additional space and resource for the system to operate efficiently and continue expanding further across apetito’s customers – driving up return volumes across the country.
This expansion announcement also follows the Government’s confirmation that it will be introducing of an offset for closed loop recycling schemes from the Extended Producer Responsibility legislation, a pivotal step forward in the investment of a more circular economy.
This update to legislation was applauded by the meal provider and encourages the continued investment in its world-leading circularity system.